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My Man of Steel Review…of Sorts

(SPOILERS ALL OVER THE PLACE!!!)

It’s taken me a long time to write something outside of discussions about Man of Steel. I was conflicted in the theater and I am now. When I first saw it I had a person to the left of me (I’ll leave out names to protect them) who hated it and a person to my right who loved it. They both displayed their feelings for it as they were watching the movie a the midnight release of the movie. It was as close to having an angel and a devil on your shoulders as a person can have and yet…which was which?

Today is the day I knew I needed to commit my thoughts down to be cataloged by Google and indexed for all to find. One reason is that we recorded our Man of Steel Podcast today. I’ll post a link here once we get it up. I was pretty prepared for it because I’ve had so many discussions online as well as read articles, watched videos, and listened to other podcasts on the topic. A month later and the only thing we can all agree on is that it’s one of the most divisive movies in a long time. Most either love it or hate it and for all kinds of different reasons. What can be said is that it was wildly financially successful. So much so that today’s San Diego Comic-Con announcement (second reason for writing this now) that a Superman/Batman: World’s Finest Movie is on everyone’s lips.

I’ve decided so much has been said about this movie in-depth that I am going to just focus on a few items I liked and a few items I didn’t like. Let’s get started:

Liked

Trailer

This is my favorite trailer of all-time. It has so much emotion and is amazingly concise. The Man of Steel trailer brought an honest tear to my eye when I first saw it. I must have watched it ten times in a row when it came out and once every day after. I still think it’s pretty much perfect. Have you seen the original Superman and/or the 1989 Batman trailer? I was trying to get a feel for other super hero movie trailers and Man of Steel is about 1000 times better. Here’s what I mean:

Jor-El

Jor-El was awesome. The first words I said leaving the movie theater were: “I want to see a Jor-El on Krypton movie next!”. The whole world of Krypton was really well fleshed out. I felt like I understood his point of view and really connected with him as a heroic character. He was not just a man of science but a man of action and conviction. Similar to the opening sequence in the 2009 Star Trek movie (of which this movie also borrowed a lot of visual devices from), you see a hero father give everything he can to ensure his son has the opportunity to survive and you also emotionally connect with this father. It’s one of the best opening sequences in a super her movie and, like Star Trek, sets up the villain of the piece.

Lois Lane

I don’t think Lois has ever been fully realized in almost any medium. A lot of people have feelings on who she really is but every medium has just as much contradictory behaviors. She is an independent reporter in the comics and YET spent an inordinate amount of time trying to get Superman to marry her. The fact that she is constantly in need of Superman to save her from peril also doesn’t bode well for her independence. This movie did, however, do away with one of the problems that has nagged her fans from the beginning – not being able to tell that the two men she is with the most are the same person because of a pair of glasses.

Lois not knowing Clark was Superman made her an idiot to anyone watching or reading her exploits. Superman/Clark use to wink at us, the views, in the Adventures of Superman TV show to underline just how dumb she truly was. The Lois Lane of Man of Steel is a true investigative journalist. She did the work and figured out his identity before she met either Superman or Clark officially. She was capable enough to work with Jor-El to help save the Superman reversing years of her only being the damsel in distress (even though he saves her a few times in this movie too). Amy Adam’s Lois Lane is capable, smart, and someone I want to see more of in future movies. Her importance can no longer be relegated to par of a fake love triangle so there’s a much better chance for her to make a big impact on the story in another way.

Hans Zimmer

I was ALMOST looking forward to the Man of Steel score as much as I was the movie! Hans Zimmer scores are some of my favorite pieces to listen to. Like I mentioned, the trailer blew me away but a lot of that was the theme. Who in their right mind tries to follow John Williams’s Superman theme? Almost not Hans. He didn’t want to do it until Christopher Nolan prompted him to on behalf of Zack Snyder. Zack and Hans had a discussion about themes and the broad strokes of the movie and that sold him on giving it a try. The one note that Snyder gave Zimmer was “It would be cool if the theme was humble”. That’s not really a thing in composition and yet…you can hear it in the finished piece. He did it. It’s really an exceptional score that I’d argue has more heart than the actual film!

Visuals

I’ve never seen two super powered beings fight each other in a movie that looked more spectacular. The best fight between two beings of this power level in my head has been the Superman/Captain Marvel fight in Justice League Unlimited…and that as animated. This was the promise of comics realized in three dimensions. It was a spectacle that then became…something else. Still, for a while, I was enthralled.

Zod

I think this movie gave us a Zod with a real clear motivation beyond conquest for conquest’s sake. He reminded me of the Eradicator when he first appeared in Superman comics. He was built to preserve and defend the Kryptonian way of life even to the degree that he was compelled to try and take over Krypton in order to save it. Zod did things he didn’t want to because he felt he had to. He even showed moments of compassion. I was impressed with this version of the character up until the final third of the movie. I understand why he became a mad dog but…it made him less interesting.

The first Two Thirds of the Movie

Well, most of it any way. The flashbacks worked for me as a story telling device. Lois as our window into his world really worked for me too. Her looking into his past was a conduit for exposition that explained why he was doing what he was doing when we find him. Clark was very brooding but it made sense. He didn’t know what he wanted to do with his life and Jonathan Kent didn’t give him the tools he needed to decide. It was the story of a man who wanted to do good but was ruled by fear because it’s what he was taught. What came next never really paid off where this was all going.

Didn’t Like

Hope

Clark/Kal/Superman doesn’t deliver on the promise that Jor-El made. This promise, to me and lot of other fans is the very point of Superman. Here’s what Jor-El says:

You will give the people an ideal to strive towards. They will race behind you, they will stumble, they will fall. But in time, they will join you in the sun. In time, you will help them accomplish wonders.

What does he do in this movie to deliver on any of that? The people of Earth no he’s an alien, he has immense power, and that he is willing to kill (more on that later). He never connects with the citizens of Earth while in costume other than Jenny noticing him and saying “He saved us.”…which didn’t feel very organic. He never moves his fight to a cornfield in Kansas (as Mark Waid suggested in his review) nor does he worry about debris in his LONG disastrous battle in Metropolis. He comes into town and people run in doors. His powers are his muscles and not his heart.

He wears the Kryptonian symbol of hope but it doesn’t seem like hope is his mission. I’ve put this out there before and many people tell me this will come to fruition in the the next movie (how a Superman/Batman movie will have a focus on hope, I have no idea) but that doesn’t change the fact that in THIS movie, he offer nothing to aspire towards. He is a brute who fights another brute. Sure, this brute is fighting for us but why? What are his ideals? What can he teach us that will help us catch up to him so we can join him in the sun?

Disaster Porn

No review of Man of Steel would be complete without the use of the phrase “disaster porn”, right? I made mention that the Superman/Zod fight was the best super powered fight I have ever seen on the big screen but…did it go too far? Was there a diminished return? I think so. I was really into it for a while and then there was a point in all the devastation that I thought…doesn’t he care about the people? Why aren’t they showing him saving anyone?

The World Machine was created by the writers in order to have a good enough excuse for Superman to be as far as way as possible to maximum amount of destruction can befall Metropolis. Combine that with Zod becoming a mad dog that wants to be put down and you have the recipe for a fight that went on so long it made me go from enjoying it to wanting it to end. It didn’t sit well with me and a lot of other movie goers.

Jonathan Kent

If I had to describe Jonathan Kent in one word it would be “Fear”. His fears were really the main lesson that molded Clark’s life. He lives his entire life going from place to place never really growing or making something of himself because his father told him humanity would reject him.

Clark Kent: My father believed that if the world found out who I really was, they’d reject me… out of fear. He was convinced that the world wasn’t ready. What do you think?

Then there’s the often quoted “maybe” from Pa Kent:

Jonathan Kent: You have to keep this side of yourself a secret.

Clark Kent at 13: What was I supposed to do? Let them die?[brief pause]

Jonathan Kent: Maybe…

Was he just working this out and saying something he didn’t really mean? Maybe. But, you don’t get it a counter point to this at any other time. He doesn’t really leave Clark with any lessons other than people will fear him and the conflicting story that he was sent there for a reason. It’s too bad he couldn’t take a stab at why he might have been there (to help people?). Instead, the heavy lifting is done by a hologram of his birth father. Some feel his death was a poignant lesson. I found it close to suicide. I hope that dog was worth it.

Humorless

On the whole, this movie is almost without any semblance of humor. It’s not a comedy; I get that. It does contribute to the “darkness” of this movie (the other ingredients are the lack of inspiration given by Superman, destruction of metropolis, and the no way out execution at the end). Marvel Studios execs have said that they want to create a world where you wish you could be a citizen of. DC has not followed this path. Their modern films are dark places of fear, isolation, and mistrust. This Superman is very much of that world. It almost feels weird when he smiles. The lack of humor in the character combined with his aimlessness at the beginning, plus his fear of people knowing who he is created a very sad person in Superman.

Bechdel Test

The movie fails it. Not something I recognized when I first watched it but true none the less. Don’t know what that means? Google it!

The Jesus Analogy

I’ve never been much for Superman as a Jesus analog (always seen him as more of a Moses and you know his creators did too!). That said, it’s not a new idea. It’s just that the subtlety was completely removed this time around. When he talks to the priest (which felt OK and made sense) the image of Jesus RIGHT OVER HIS HEAD was so in your face I thought it was an IHOP or Sears sign. That is NOTHING compared to Jor-El (the father) telling Kal (the son sent to Earth) “You Can Save Everyone” right before he falls to Earth in a crucifixion pose. My eyes rolled so slow they almost came out! That’s all fine (sort of) IF you pay it off. What’s the payoff of this Jesus-like character? He has no choice but to snap his enemies neck. It just doesn’t work as an analogy. Like a lot of things in this movie, they threw a lot of ingredients into the mixture but forgot to see how it turned out.

Overall

I liked a number of things in this movie but the feeling I had coming out of the theater wasn’t excitement, hope, or inspiration. Maybe that was never the point of this movie but those feelings were the point of the source material. It was an amazing spectacle but it never gave me joy (except the Jor-El on Krypton scenes). I just don’t think it delivered on the promise that brighter days are ahead because we have Superman to show us the way.

Well, maybe things will be different in Superman/Batman: World’s Finest. Maybe adding Batman will make the movie less dark and offer more hope!

I’ve been collecting memes and links about this movie since I saw it so I can articulate better how I feel. Here’s a collection:

In its 24th year, the Motor City Comic Con in Novi, MI outside Detroit has grown larger and attracted more fans than ever before. A recent update on the Con’s Facebook page confirmed that over 30,000 fans attended the 3-Day show. While it’s true that there was heavy traffic to enter the parking lot and long lines to enter the hall, indie artists reported triple the sales of last year’s show due to the high volume of people through the door.

This is the front of the line on Saturday morning an hour before doors opened.

Here’s a rundown of the guests that this reporter had the chance to interact with.

David Lloyd

V for Vendetta artist, David Lloyd’s latest project is a 21-page noir thriller in Aces Weekly Volume 1. Aces Weekly is an exclusively digital comic anthology available at http://www.acesweekly.co.uk/home.

George Perez

The Great George Perez attended the show, delivering commissions and sketching sharpie headshots in between countless autographs. Mr. Perez’ latest released work is the cover of Legion of Super-Heroes #20, available this month from DC.

Anyone wanting to catch up on Perez’ past work need look no further than this month’s Superman Vol. 1: What Price Tomorrow? Tpb and Crisis on Multiple Earths Vol. 6 Tpb.

If that’s not enough, his influence is felt across the New 52 as characters he created may be followed monthly in the pages of Nightwing, Red Hood and the Outlaws, and Justice League.

Barry Kitson

Barry Kitson is currently nailing it on Valiant’s Bloodshot title! Issue #11, containing Barry’s artwork is out this month along with more Barry pencils in the Harbinger Vol. 2 Tpb. Furthermore, it was just announced that Barry will be illustrating the aftermath of this summer’s Harbinger Wars event in Harbinger #15.

Kitson cares deeply for his fans and this weekend was a prime example. When Barry saw gridlock on the road leading to the convention center saturday morning, he chose to make the journey from highway to convention hall by foot rather than keep his fans waiting!

Duane Swierczynski

Speaking of Bloodshot, the writer for that title and Valiant’s big summer event, Harbinger Wars, Duane Swierczynski, was present! Duane’s also involved with the revival of X for Dark Horse.

Horror comic writer and Bleeding Cool columnist Dirk Manning was dressed to impress while promoting his recent release of the Write-Or-Wrong column collected edition. Dirk’s next project is a flip book called Love Stories (To Die For) containing two comic book horror stories. The book will be available from Image Comics’ partner studio, Shadowline, in September.

Tyler Kirkham, fresh from delivering the incentives to those that pledged to his successful kickstarter project NAWRG, set up in prime convention hall real estate. In short, NAWRG is a story about a troll that lives with a family, but the story contains a deeper meaning on how adopted pets bring great joy to people. Tyler’s recent work includes Red Hood & the Outlaws, Superman, Teen Titans, and Green Lantern: New Guardians. His next project is Action Comics #22.

Yanick Paquette

Yanick Paquette made his DC debut two years ago in the pages of Batman Inc. and continued his DC work with the New 52 Swamp Thing series. Yanick’s next project is Wonder Woman: Earth One where he’ll reteam with Grant Morrison. Yanick remarked on how he loves the way that Grant consistently surprises him and he never knows what Grant will put into their stories.

Ken Hunt

Ken Hunt is an artist on the cusp of breaking through to the mainstream, currently working on a top secret cover for a future DC release.

Simon Bisley

Englishman Simon Bisley was particularly interested in the Detroit Redwings t-shirts that local hockey fans were sporting, remarking on how cool the winged wheel design was.

Scott Kolins

Scott Kolins recent Orang Lantern backups in DC’s Threshold title will soon give way to a Larfleeze ongoing series with his art and written by Keith Giffen.

Sean Forney

Local hero Sean Forney is in the midst of his own kickstarter project The Scarlett Huntress! The Scarlet Huntress features Sean and his wife Stephanie sharing art and writing duties. The story is a modern take on the Little Red Riding Hood mythos. He’s almost at his goal and your pledge could be the one that puts him over the top! http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/838034909/scarlet-huntress-anthology

Jay Defoy AKA Jay A.D.

Young talent Jay Defoy recently completed the first issue of his creator owned title Threadcount: The Tale of Norman Crest. It’s about a man that gains superpowers that seem ridiculous at first but turn out to be a fun crime fighting asset as the story goes on.

Sara Richard

Sara Richard’s artwork has a fun fairytale influence to it. She spends her days drawing adorable My Little Pony Covers. Check her out.

These five artists traveled from Spain to meet their fans and deliver high end commissions. They’re pictured holding pieces that they did for comic art connoisseur Ari Shapiro’s Batman on Gargoyle themed collection. Reportedly they were commissioned as a group since they share a common rep. Once they started work, the artists competed with each other over whose piece was strongest and which Ari would like most.

In Memory of Josh Medors

I first encountered Josh Medors’ work when discussing the rising popularity of sketches with a friend. My buddy showed me a piece that Josh had done for him. He advised me to talk to Josh if I was interested in growing my own sketch collection, as Josh worked hard for his fans, producing convention sketches that were often mistaken as published pinups.

Josh’s published work consisted of indie creations (Willow Creek), covers (Moon Knight, Living Corpse), and interior work (GI Joe: America’s Elite, 30 Days of Night). He worked on a number of other horror and fantasy titles such as Fused, Grimm Fairy Tales, Frank Frazetta’s Swamp Demon, and Child’s Play; however, his biggest impact was on the convention scene. Josh’s popularity spread like a grass roots movement. Once he drew for someone, that person inevitably showed their new artwork to all their friends, which continued to build Medors’ fan base.

When I finally met him a few months later on Free Comic Book Day at Packrat Comics in his hometown of Columbus, Ohio, Josh had already been tragically diagnosed with a rare form of spinal cancer. Throughout his chemotherapy treatments, Josh was as strong and true a soldier as the characters he drew. He made numerous convention appearances, sometimes at the Hero Initiative Booth and sometimes at a table with his friend and fellow artist, Sean Forney. Josh’s output slowed a bit while being treated, but the quality of his work never faltered. It was a rare privilege to commission Josh that day, and when he insisted on taking my piece home with him to finish, I realized how dedicated and unique of an artist he was.

I next met Josh at the Motor City Con in Novi, MI where he presented me with one of my earliest and most favorite Wolverine drawings.

Despite his immense talent, Josh had an unassuming and relaxed demeanor. He was friendly and eager to talk with fans. Josh was a great listener with the ability to take a sketch idea, internalize it, and create a piece of artwork that included the necessary elements of the character along with his own stylistic choices, evidenced in the above artwork. He told me that he wanted me to have a sketch that I could show off to others, as my friend did to me.

Over the next few months I acquired two more Wolvie pieces by Mr. Medors.

Josh created a moody effect by adding highlights to artwork drawn on colored paper, as demonstrated in all three pieces.

Months later at Wizard World Philly, I met Ariel Olivetti, an internationally known artist who also excels at creating the effect of adding highlights to artwork on colored paper. After commissioning Mr. Olivetti, he was interested in looking at the rest of my collection. He opened the portfolio to Josh’s first piece, was immediately intrigued, and commented on its professionalism. In a fun turn of events, he continued to leaf through my portfolio, eventually stopping on my other two Medors sketches. He inquired about the artist, without realizing it was the same in all three cases! Olivetti’s English is limited, as he hails from Argentina, but Medors’ artwork transcends the language barrier.

The last time I saw Josh was at this year’s Cincinnati Comic Expo. I made a point to tell him that his hard work did not go unnoticed and one of the fans I created was none other than Ariel Olivetti. Josh was thankful, and remained modest. He sketched all day, steadily completing pieces. He even said he was pain free and feeling great. It appeared to me that he had beaten the cancer…

…Which made his death last week that much more surprising and heartbreaking.

Josh Medors was a colossal talent. We’ve lost a true hero that enriched our community, but he’ll live on through his family, his friends, and through his work.

Mid-Ohio Con Becomes Wizard World Ohio in 2012

The 2012 convention season is in full swing! The Ohio Comic Con, formerly the Mid-Ohio Con, is hosted by Wizard in the great city of Columbus!

Wizard Conventions are more of a pop culture celebration than a traditional comic con. Their diverse guest lists tend to attract wrestling fans, sci-fi fans, and TV fans right along with those of us whose main reason for attending the show is to hobnob with the best creators in comics.

Tommy Castillo hosted the Drink ‘N Draw on Friday night. This was a truly personal experience where amateurs and pros alike gathered to share some fun times over beer and Bristol board. We exercised our creative muscles under the care and guidance of Tommy with his fellow judges, Primo Cardinelli and Stuart Sayger. My table was challenged to draw “Batman vs. Stewie on a Farm in Late Fall/Almost Winter” while others had their own unique set of characters and circumstances to bring to life. While this reporter didn’t place in the amateur category, I appreciated the friendly and personal environment that Tommy and Wizard created, clearly out of a love for artwork and the desire to present opportunities for unsung talent. Mark my words; someone is going to hit it big after they win this event! Jay Fife took first place in the pro category, winning a free table at an upcoming Wizard show.

Wizard has been criticized for changing the “Mom and Pop” atmosphere of the Mid-Ohio Con to its more commercially-driven present incarnation. I present the Drink ‘N Draw as proof that a family vibe still exists at the show. Bravo Tommy! Bravo Wizard!

Neal Adams, mayor of New York (practically), is hard at work on First X-Men for Marvel, but took time out of his schedule to meet his fans, and hold a Q&A panel where he discussed his favorite character to draw, working with Stan Lee, breaking into the business, and fighting for creator’s rights to have original artwork returned to them.

Alan Davis flew in from the UK! Mr. Davis is presently gearing up for a top secret Marvel project that he couldn’t release details on. However, his modern work typically appears on special projects outside of main titles where Mr. Davis can place the utmost care into his pencils to deliver the highest quality possible, far ahead of looming deadlines (i.e. Justice League: The Nail and Avengers: Prime). Note that Mr. Davis inspires such loyalty from his fans that a few good natured art lovers eagerly stepped up to the plate to assist in managing Mr. Davis’ endless sketch and autograph line. Another thankful collector presented Alan’s wife, Mrs. Davis, with flowers to thank her for visiting our country with her husband.

Mike McKone attended! McKone recently moved to San Diego. After years of being a Wizard mainstay at east coast shows, this is a rare appearance for him on the right-hand side of the country. Fans welcomed McKone with open arms, who said he was pleasantly surprised at how cosmopolitan the city of Columbus is. Mike’s favorite characters are The Hulk and The Thing in that order.

Mexican superstar Humberto Ramos made it to the show! Ramos remains one of the premiere Spidey artists and his work can be found there most months.

Jorge Molina came up from Mexico! Jorge was excited about the Cable cover he just finished, which will serve as the character’s first post X-Sanction appearance. Cable will be sporting a new look without his machine parts for a short time while his character transitions between X-Sanction and the upcoming Cable and X-Force.

Tyler Kirkham is moving from Green Lantern: New Guardians to Teen Titans! Issue 0, featuring Tyler’s artwork was just released.

Image Comics writer Dirk Manning arrived promoting the upcoming collection of his online column Write or Wrong and his current webcomic Tales of Mr. Rhee.

Local talent Sean Forney sketched for fans at the Hero Initiative booth!

Jordan Gunderson attended the show promoting his brand new “Ink and Blood” art collection.

Chad Cicconi of Action Lab is gearing up for a huge announcement on a new project. Watch the news sites, fans!

Watercolor artist Carla Wyzgala stays hard at work on webcomic Surreality, but she’s never too busy to meet her fans!

Sketch card artist Erik Hodson has been in the comics industry for over 7 years as an independent publisher and creator. Check out his light hearted webcomic Chad the Fat Kid.

Short Box Podcast

Short Box Podcast was founded by Adam Russell and Nick Borelli in July 2012. The website and podcast strives to discuss what we love about geek culture including comic books, video games, television, movies, and table gaming. Follow us on Google+